The look on Reece Nott's face gradually changed from triumph to horror.
When he was caught by Ash and the others at the manor, he was knocked out cold and did not witness Ivan crushing the Dark Wizards in the alley.
Therefore, seeing a thirteen-year-old wizard suddenly transform into a giant before him was beyond his comprehension.
Reece Nott could not believe it, and did not want to believe it!
He roared and clawed at Ivan's arm around his neck, trying to tear the fantasy away.
However, the giant's skin was so hard that even with all his strength, he could not leave a mark on it.
Ivan had no intention of coddling his opponent. He tightened his grip on Rhys Nott's arm and squeezed. The giant brown bear's body tensed, and its paws flailed weakly in the air. Ivan felt an overwhelming sense of suffocation, and his hideous mouth opened wide, but he could only utter unintelligible sounds.
Ivan's five fingers were like five iron tongs, tightening step by step, and Reese Nott felt as if his neck were going to break. Despair welled up inside him, and his brain became groggy.
Just as Reese Nott thought he was going to suffocate, the hand finally let go, and he crashed to the ground, reverting to his wizard form.
However, Rhys Nott's arrogant expression was gone. He clutched his bruised neck with difficulty and slowly moved back, staring at the figure in front of him in shock.
"This is impossible… this is impossible!"
"Nothing is impossible!" Ivan said. He had removed Boggart's Transfiguration and was now a thirteen-year-old wizard again.
"I told you so, didn't I? Mr Reece Nott! Weakness and ignorance are not obstacles to survival. Pride is!"
Reece Nott was too shaken to argue.
Ivan had proved the truth of these words, shattering the beliefs that had been carved into his mind, and Rhys Nott was beginning to wonder if he had been taught correctly.
Were pure-bloods really born to be superior to half-bloods and Muggles?
Then why wasn't the House of Hales among the Sacred Twenty-Eight?
The other wizards present were also shocked by Ivan's use of blood magic, and although they had been able to extract information from the Dark Wizards, it was nothing compared to what they were witnessing.
The wizards who had been suspicious of Ivan's abilities quickly put their suspicions aside.
Ivan slowly approached Reese Nott, looking disappointed at the young wizard, who had lost all will to fight.
"Then, Mr. Rhys Nott, I assume you will speak now?"
"S-say what?" Reece Nott stammered, looking confused.
"You'd better be honest with me. Why on earth would the Norts target us like this?" Ivan demanded, his voice thick with anger.
He hadn't had a chance to find out about the conflict between Alicia and the wizarding market, but now that he had a chance, he wanted to.
What? Was there such a thing? Reece Nott was stunned. He looked at Ivan, confused.
He had the distinct impression that the House of Nott was forced to retaliate because Alicia had recruited a large number of people to provoke them and try to take over the wizarding market.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have spent so much money and energy on this trip.
"Sir Harles… you may have some misunderstanding…" Reese Nott quickly retorted, but he did not dare to say anything too harsh, in case he angered the harmless-looking but vicious young wizard in front of him.
"Misunderstanding? You don't want to talk about it, do you?" Ivan sneered, interrupting Reece Nott. He did not expect him to be so stubborn. He had underestimated him!
"It doesn't matter if you don't want to talk about it. I'm sure someone will tell me, won't they?" Ivan said, turning to look at the Dark Wizards kneeling nearby.
The Dark Wizards were stunned by Ivan's words.
Fortunately, there were a lot of smart people. Combined with what Ivan had said before, some people soon realized that this was a test for them!
A Dark Wizard who had come to his senses immediately pointed a finger at Rhys Nott and spoke harshly.
"Sir Harls is right, there is no misunderstanding! Your foolish attempt to resist the great Harls is an unforgivable sin!"
Ivan frowned. What was all this nonsense? All he wanted to know was why Alicia was having trouble with the wizarding market.
Another Dark Wizard notices Ivan's change of expression and immediately understands that his companion's words are not what Ivan expected.
It was true that the young wizard in front of him was ambitious and wanted to dominate Knockturn Alley, but he did not intend to intimidate people with brutal killing. He needed a reputation to occupy the moral high ground!
Thinking of this, the Dark Wizard decisively revealed the dirty deeds of the Notts in Knockturn Alley.
As a pure-blood family that ran the largest black market in the wizarding world, they had a wide range of businesses, including, but not limited to, smuggling magical creatures, buying and selling illegal substances, and occasionally engaging in shady activities.
However, the Norts did not do any of these things themselves. Instead, they controlled their representatives remotely and hired a group of so-called enforcers to act on their behalf in Knockturn Alley.
Because these pure-blood families cared only about profit and rarely interfered in the management of the wizarding market, some law-enforcement officers resorted to extortion and bullying in order to please or gain personal profit.
Many witches and wizards complained about it, but they were unable to compete with the wizarding market due to their lack of individual strength.
When the Dark Wizard spoke, the other three quickly remembered that Ivan wanted to take over the Wizarding Market in a justifiable manner, so they quickly added and even fabricated accusations.
"A few people mysteriously disappear from Knockturn Alley every year. They must be working on some sort of forbidden dark magic!"
"They're named after the Regulators, and they must have wanted to be the Ministry of Magic in Knockturn Alley! What a ridiculous idea…Herr Hulse will never let you get away with it!"
…
(PS: I'm sorry… There's only one update today. Recently, the conversation has been a little tricky and I've been changing it because I don't like it, so I'm writing very slowly. Please forgive me.)